ADVICE & OPINION
BACK TO SCHOOL
FMJ AIMS TO SUPPORT TECHNICAL EXPERTISE IN THE FM MARKET
With pupils set to go back to school on 8th March, there are a number of safety
measures schools need to implement to ensure the health and wellness of staff ,
students and school communities says Matthew Margetts, Director of Sales and
Marketing at Smarter Technologies
The first lockdown and closure
of schools brought on by the
Coronavirus pandemic forced
headteachers to re-examine school
safety standards. Now that a third
lockdown is here and schools have
been shut down for a second time,
the education sector needs to look
to facilities management expertise
on the benefits of smart technology
before children return to the school
environment. And with the everchanging
variants of the COVID-19
virus, schools can’t a ord to be “late
to class” when it comes to health and
safety.
Some schools in the US have been
using smart technologies for a while
to measure utility consumption and
e iciency, streamline maintenance and
enhance general school safety. These
technologies are playing a significant
role in keeping school buildings healthy
and preventing the spread of disease.
So, let’s take a look at how smart
technology can help schools to become
safer, as well as more energy-e icient
and cost-e ective.
THERMAL DETECTION CAMERAS
Smart cameras placed at entry points
16 MARCH 2021
of a school can remove the manual task
of temperature testing. These cameras
provide medically-accurate, real-time
temperatures of individuals in real-time.
Thermal cameras use infra-red (IR) to
read an object’s temperature. Every item
with a temperature above absolute zero
emits a certain amount of radiation. The
higher the temperature, the higher the
level of radiation.
If a high temperature is detected, the
so ware sends an instant alert to the
relevant party, who can then follow
the protocols in place. It can also be
set to deny access to those with high
temperatures or to people not wearing
masks.
In some cases, crowd scanning and
temperature-testing technology can be
incorporated into existing CCTV systems,
working alongside access control and
alerting solutions.
This technology brings a number
of benefits to an educational setting
by helping to create a safer, more
compliant environment, without
additional resources and by maintaining
social distancing. Smart thermal
cameras are safer, more accurate and
more cost-e ective than having a person
use a handheld temperature gun.
SAFER WATER
As the Coronavirus continues to
sweep through the world’s population,
healthcare providers should also be
on heightened alert for Legionnaires’
disease, another potential cause of
pneumonia with similar symptoms.
Legionella are potentially deadly
bacteria that can infect a school’s
water supply and cause an outbreak
of Legionnaire’s disease. It’s a school’s
duty of care to prevent Legionella
infection by monitoring the risk of the
bacteria proliferating.
Particularly as schools reopen
and previously stagnant plumbing
and cooling systems return to use,
additional Legionella cases could
rear their ugly head to emergency
departments in the coming months.
Traces of Legionella were recently
found at a Worcestershire school. The
school was forced to remain shut while
treatment and testing took place.
The Health and Safety Executive
advises: “If your building was closed
or has reduced occupancy during the
Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak,
water system stagnation can occur
due to lack of use, increasing the risks
of Legionnaires’ disease… If the water
system is still used regularly, maintain
the appropriate measures to prevent
legionella growth.”
Typically, managing the risk of
Legionella includes running all outlets
for two minutes, taking and recording
the temperature of the water to ensure
that it’s not conducive to Legionella
growth. This is a time-consuming
process, which is why schools
are looking to automated water
temperature monitoring systems. This
smart system with automated flushing
and temperature testing reports and
records water temperature data in real
time. Instant alerts will notify relevant
sta if water temperatures fall within
“Legionella-friendly” parameters.
CLEANER AIR
We know that SARS-CoV-2 can be
transmitted through aerosols (particles
smaller than droplets that remain in
the air over time and distance). This
is especially dangerous in poorly
ventilated rooms, with the potential to
lead to “superspreading” events.
Without any ventilation, it takes
about four minutes for the number of
small droplets in the air to be halved.
With mechanical ventilation turned on
in a room, the number of respiratory
particles is halved in 1.4 minutes. If the
rooms also have doors and windows
open, the number of small droplets is
halved a er 30 seconds.
Advisers say that improving air
filtration and ventilation in schools can
help mitigate the potential airborne
transmission of COVID-19.
Strategies include:
» Increasing outdoor air ventilation
» Filtering indoor air
» Using portable air cleaners with
HEPA filters
Smart building technologies such
as advanced HVAC controls can help
facilities managers promote cleaner
air with less hassle. For example, smart
HVAC systems use sensors to remotely
monitor and control variables such as:
» Humidity
» Temperature
» Indoor air quality
» The level of carbon dioxide and
other pollutants
This technology is also energy-e icient
and cost-e ective. If any potentially
dangerous conditions are detected,
the system will send an instant alert to
the manager in charge, who can then
intervene immediately to adjust the air
quality settings. Even better, automated
adjustments can be put in place to
remove the need for any manual
intervention at all.
While these solutions may be key to
the reopening of schools in the era of
COVID-19, they also bring long-term
benefits. Although COVID-19 may have
accelerated the adoption of smart
technology, many of these solutions are
focused on health, wellness and security
in general; which have been needed in
school systems for a long time.
FAST FACTS